Character Analysis: A Road Not Taken

The Second Chance Cycle Second chances are very hard to get, but when they are given, they should be appreciated and valued. Many of the characters in The First Stone have impactful second chances that they may not fully appreciate at first. As they live out their second chances Reef, Alex, and Leeza go through major personality change that they may not realize for a while.

The award-winning author, Luis Alberto Urrea, creator of The Hummingbird's Daughter, Into the Beautiful North, and The Devil's Highway, describes The Devil’s Highway which occurred in May of 2001, one of many that impacted the desert on undocumented immigrants. which is a desert located beyond Sonora, Mexico. It is a desert which few turn to in able to cross over. A group of illegal Mexican were left for dead after attempting to cross; they were left stranded after traveling for days in the wrong direction, through mountains, desert and only a small amount of water along with a few personal items. The Devil’s Highway name was set out to one’s belief “bad medicine” (5). Even though the desert is an obstacle itself, there are still other physical

Jimmy knows too well the agonies of abandonment. First, when his mother, Cecilia, ran away with Richard to pursue a better lifestyle. Then, due to his father’s, Damacio Baca, alcoholisms and violent behavior; he also had to leave Jimmy behind. In spite of the drawbacks from abandonment to being a maximum security prisoner in Arizona State Prison, Jimmy preserver’s the darkness of prison by overcoming his illiteracy. However Cecilia and Damacio is not as fortunate as their child; Cecilia is shot by Richard after confronting him for a divorce and Damacio chokes to death after he is released from the detox center(Baca 263). Therefore the most significant event in this section of the memoir, A Place to Stand by Jimmy Santiago Baca is the death of Jimmy’s parents.

A Lesson Before Dying A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines tells the story of a black man, Jefferson, with unequal rights, being accused of killing a white man. Although, the accusation was far from being right, he is a black man, and blacks were treated unfairly. Throughout the journey of the trial, Jefferson and Grant became very close, and they both learned a lot from each other and the trial. Grant learns the lesson of being a man, because he develops feelings, and becomes humble.

In the book Out of My Mind, author Sharon M. Draper creates a character named Melody. Melody was born with a gift; she was gifted with brains and with a photographic memory. She was also born with a disability, cerebral palsy, a neurological disorder which causes Melody to be bound to a wheelchair because of the severity of it. She does not have control of her limbs but has figured out a way to maneuver her electric wheelchair with her thumbs. Melody is faced with challenges that cause her to lose and gain socially, physically, and emotionally aspects through out the text.

Spending time in jail can really change a man. In the novel A Lesson Before Dying by award-winning author Ernest J Gaines, the story is about a young man with a challenge of a lifetime. Grant one of the main characters is given a task of changing a man. The novel takes place in Bayonne Louisiana, where the Civil Rights Act has not yet taken place. Segregation was still an issue at this time, and many of the characters throughout the novel face segregation head-on.

Race and racism are two of the most discussed topics in the book “A Hope in the Unseen”. When Cedric Jennings went to the MIT program during the summer, he was seen as the only “ghetto” student among the other minority students going through the same experience has him. This was mainly because of his ethnicity and his personal background. While he was at Brown University, he was having trouble with his roommate, Rob, because they “didn’t have anything in common,”. One of Cedric’s friends, Chiniqua, tries to encourage him to just hang out with the other black kids but he decides to broaden his horizons by interacting with other ethnicity groups.

Eddie Morra is a scrappy was a regular man who has a book contract and dreams to become a well-recognized writer but is having a serious care of writer's block. It is so severe that he has not even written a single word of his book yet. Although he is not an alcoholic he frequently drinks and shirks his responsibilities. Sensing that he is going nowhere in life, his girlfriend Lindy decides to leave him. She says in short, that he uses her for expenses, and as the cleaning lady. She feels that he has no longer become the man she fell in love with. The wife of his landlord accurately states Eddies current state as a self-defeating, energy sucking, dirt bag, sponging off the lives of others. He runs into his Ex brother in law (Vern) who offers him a drug that will allow the user to access the 100 percent of his brain instead the regular 20 percent. Vern gets

I was pleased to have attended a lecture cosponsored by the Ethics Center, the Fresno State office of the president, the Fresno Bee and Valley PBS. The lecture began with Dr. Castro recognizing a few leaders on campus, including a past Fresno State president, Dr. John D. Welty and campus volunteer Mary Castro. Dr. Castro then mentioned a few things about Mr. Brooks stating that he is a columnist for the New York Times and an analyst for the PBS “News Hour” and NPR’s “All Things Considered.” Dr. Brooks also teaches at Yale University, one the finest university in the country. Dr. Castro continued by saying that he learned that Mr. Brooks office hours are from 9am to 1pm and how “cool” it sounded to him. I was surprised how many people attended the event. I was fortunate to find a seat. David Brooks mentioned how he has some remote roots in the Central Valley because his father grew in Chowchilla, CA but Mr. Brooks grew in New York.

Will-power and determination plays a major role when it comes to people accomplishing goals and performing the tasks they are given. When a person possesses these two qualities they are motivated, focused, will not give up easily, determined along with many other things. The word determination is defined as, “the act of coming to a decision or of fixing or settling a purpose.” Will-power is, “the strength or will to carry out one’s decisions, wishes, or plans.” In the short story A Worn Path by Eudora Welty, the main character Phoenix carried out the meaning of these two words throughout the whole story. She had experienced many road blocks during her journey, but she did not let them stop her from reaching

Oftentimes, when writing literature, authors tend to form story elements that follow a certain archetype. An archetype can be any common example of a character, theme, symbol, situation, or setting that reappears in various genres of writing, and is a universal pattern. Particularly, character archetypes are general models or outlines that other characters can be based on, like a ruler, a hero, or a rebel. In The Safest Lies, the story focuses on Kelsey, who grew up terrified of the wicked world outside of her secure home. Her apprehension was instilled by her mother, Mandy, who was kidnapped when she was seventeen. After not stepping outside of their house since her miraculous escape over a decade before, Mandy tragically disappeared

Authors in many instances use the main elements in the story such as setting and narrative to prove a point in the story. For example, writers often use characters, their actions, and their interaction with other characters to support or prove a theme. In the short story “Our Thirteenth Summer”, Barry Callaghan effectively uses characters to develop the theme that childhood is fragile and easily influenced. One of the ways that Callaghan makes effective use of characters to develop the theme is by describing the tension between Bobbie and his parents. This usage of characters supports the theme because Bobbie’s childhood is no longer free to do what he wishes, but has to bow down to his parents’

The death penalty has always been a topic of controversy since it was first introduced. The death penalty has been abolished in a majority of countries across the world, but still remains active in one third of the world. The death penalty has a lot of ethical and moral matters tied to it. In a world of individuality there is a divide on the people, for the death sentence and those against it. Many view it as a barbaric and cruel punishment that violates the constitutional right of a human being. Whilst other view it as a just punishment for serious crimes. This paper will look at the history of the death penalty in Australia in body one. Then in body two, lead on to a recent case known as the ‘Bali nine’ which was

In Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”, Frost shows the everyday human struggle to make a choice that could change the course of one’s life. In his poem, a person has the choice to take one road or the other. One road is worn out from many people taking it, and the other is barely touched, for fewer have taken that road. Throughout the poem, the speaker learns that just because so many other people have done one thing, or walked one way, does not mean everyone has to. Sometimes you just have to go your own way.

Robert Frost's poem “The Road Not Taken” describes a traveler faced with a choice of which one of two roads to travel. He knows not where either road might lead. In order to continue on his journey, he can pick only one road. He scrutinizes both roads for the possibilities of where they may take him in his travels. Frost's traveler realizes that regret is inevitable. Regardless of his choice, he knows that he will miss the experiences he might have encountered on the road not taken.